The French tertiary sector: Bank of China, China’s most international bank, opens a branch in Lyon

The Bank of China, although new to Lyon, celebrated its 100 year anniversary in 2012 and is the oldest and most international of all China’s banks. Over the past century the banking company has evolved considerably and has become a specialist in international exchanges, actively participating in the economic development of China. Bank of China now has branches in 30 countries across the world and has 11,058 establishments in total, 10,075 of which are in China.

Bank of China arrived in France in 1979, with the first agent becoming a full branch in 1986. In order to pursue further development in France, Bank of China decided to set up in Lyon in 2012. As the second most important economic region in France after Ile-de-France (the Greater Paris area), the Lyon region was indeed a strategic choice: it is the leading regional city in terms of the number of listed companies and market capitalization. In addition, Wei Peng, Deputy General Director of the Paris branch, stated another reason, “We already have a number of clients in the Rhône-Alpes region whom we used to deal with from our Paris office”. Bank of China is also involved in assisting the growing number of companies in the Rhône-Alpes region who wish to develop their business relations with China.

The company was assisted by Aderly throughout the process of setting up in the region, both in finding suitable premises and recruiting staff for the new branch. Located on Rue de la République, between Cordeliers and Hôtel de Ville, the Bank of China branch benefits from high visibility and will create 35 jobs over the course of 3 years.